Arizona flash flood leaves ‘nine dead including a two-year-old girl after wall of water raged through popular swimming hole’

The torrent hit on Saturday afternoon at Cold Springs canyon, about 100 northeast of Phoenix, washing people several miles downstream

By Guy Birchall

17th July 2017, 1:09 am

Updated: 17th July 2017, 4:36 am

AT least nine people have been killed including a two year old girl after a flash flood raged through a normally tranquil swimming area in Arizona.

More than 100 people were taking refuge from summer heat when the wall of water smashed through the Tonto National Forest, authorities said yesterday.

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Nine people have been killed after a flash flood hit a popular swimming spot in Arizona

Some of those washed downstream clung to trees until rescuers reached them.

The flash-flooding hit Saturday afternoon at Cold Springs canyon, about 100 northeast of Phoenix, washing people several miles downstream.

Disa Alexander was hiking to the swimming area where Ellison Creek and East Verde River converge when the storm hit and the water suddenly surged. She was still about 2 miles away when she came up a man holding a baby and clinging to a tree.

His wife was nearby, also in a tree.

Alexander and others tried to reach them but couldn't. Rescuers arrived a short time later.

She said: "We were kinda looking at the water; it was really brown.

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A two-year-old girl has been named amongst the dead already while many others are still missing

"Literally 20 seconds later you just see, like hundreds of gallons of water smacking down and debris and trees getting pulled in. It looked like a really big mudslide."

The National Weather Service, which had issued a flash flood warning, estimated up to 1.5 inches of rain fell over the area in an hour.

The thunderstorm hit about 8 miles upstream along Ellison Creek, which quickly flooded the narrow canyon where the swimmers were.

"They had no warning. They heard a roar, and it was on top of them," Water Wheel Fire and Medical District Fire Chief Ron Sattelmaier said.

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